Saturday, July 19, 2008

HUMOR/HUMOUR (tomayto/tomahto)

Humour defies definition, like beauty it's in the eye or ear of the beholder. Astrologers have tried to isolate it in natal charts, but I doubt it would ever be possible to come up with an all-encompassing explanation.

20th century British astrologer C.E.O. Carter had this to say about humour in his "Encyclopedia of Psychological Astrology":



HUMOUR

"Each sign has its special kind, but the general astrological indications of this gift are Venus and Taurus, Jupiter, Neptune, Sagittarius and Pisces; Moon, Cancer and Uranus. Humour in the strict sense, I put under the Moon and Cancer.

Venus and Taurus seem to have to do with laughter and amusement generally; Moon, Neptune and their signs with whimsicality (which is also noticeable in many Virginians (I think we usually call 'em Virgoans these days!), Uranus with incongruity and unexpected effects; Jupiter and Sagittarius with fun and satire. Mercury must, of course, be prominent where the power of humorous expression is involved. Humourous persons, unlike witty ones, have not always the gift of speech.

Wit depends upon a strong Mercury, the quality of wit being determined by the chief aspecting planet........ The signs which most commonly lack humour are Leo, Scorpio and Capricorn, as these often produce persons with a strong case of personal dignity, not to say self importance. They can seldom appreciate a joke at their own expense, as the Jupiter person can. It is probable that Saturn afflictions to the Moon tend to destroy humour, while Martian ones coarsen it, and incline to horseplay."


Hmmmm. I'm not sure that I agree with everything Mr. Carter said, though most of it makes a lot of sense. I certainly don't see Capricorn as lacking in humour. I've found those with strong Capricorn in their natal charts often have a very dry wit, a droll turn of phrase, and while they may not be into a rough and tumble type of humour, they're not in any way devoid of fun.

Because our natal charts are webs of connections, mixtures, blends and conflicts, it is no straightforward matter to see humour or lack of it there.

This week some disagreements erupted following the appearance of a cartoon on the cover of The New Yorker depicting Barack Obama and his wife Michelle. (SEE HERE) . Some saw this as satire, others as an insult, others saw it as representing a good slice of truth: all in the eye of the beholder!

Political humour and satire are especially necessary in our lives these days, to stop us all from going stark staring mad. If we can't laugh at the buffoons who purport to lead us, then we are good as lost. It has been obvious throughout the US primary elections that American comedians are afraid to joke about Barack Obama. This a sad state of affairs - and almost racist in itself! In the fear of appearing racist, they have become what they most fear. Equality of treatment is supposed to be the aim of discrimination laws.

Here's a YouTube presentation I came across yesterday: good, even-handed political humour:


4 comments:

anthonynorth said...

Nothing increases or decreases the popularity of Brit politicians more than satire, as I'm sure you recall - Spitting Image comes to mind. And when you get people telling them that they look like their puppet, rather than the other way round, you realise how influential it is.

Anonymous said...

Okay... Thats nice...

Twilight said...

Hello AN!
Oh, I loved "Spitting Image"! They could be quite cruel, but somehow nobody took offence. That's healthy, for both the audience and the victims, I think.

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Michelle said...

I agree with you. I love capricorn humour. Come to think of it, the Earth signs have given us some greats. Peter Sellars - Virgo. George Burns - Capricorn.
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